Plentyoffish dating forums are a place to meet singles and get dating advice or share dating experiences etc. Hopefully you will all have fun meeting singles and try out this online dating thing... Remember that we are the largest free online dating service, so you will never have to pay a dime to meet your soulmate.

What suprises me most about this discussion (in the many forms it takes) is how perfectly reasonable people will assume that a group of people with a particular belief have carte blanche to behave however they like.

In this case, it seems to be becasue that group of people often come from a different country, usually have a different skin colour to the majority in the UK and their belief is closely tied to a religion.

These same people refuse to accept that the beliefs of people from a different culture are in anyway worse than ours. Why should all cultures be considered equal? Clearly our own culture has improved over time. Why can people not accept that other cultures haven't advanced as far as ours? Does that also mean that another culture can't be better than ours? Or does it only work in the negatively (ie. no culture is worse than ours)?

If the population of Manchester took to advocating slavery of children, that would not be tolerated. If the welsh suddenly decided to persecute all blond people, that would not be tolerated. Why excuse a culture where there is so much evidence of abuse towards women?

I apologise to any Mancunians or Welsh people, it was just an example.

ive got a few things to say. first about forced marriages thats not wat islam says but thats the culture of these people, they do wat their parents did to them.

about beating up women.i would really recomend you to read the Quran in English translation and you will know how the women should be treated in islam. in Islam women have a very high status, but people these days dont really do follow their religions fully.

about holding hands and going out with non-muslimswell thats not allowed in Islam. when you want a women, you have to get married to one, you cant go out with her for such a period.you can get married to a women from any religon but the women have to convert after.

A muslim girl cannot marry a guy from any religon because there are less chances that the man will convert to Islam. so in that case you can only marry a Muslim.

if anyone has any question about this or anything else thn you can message me.

How easy it is to forget what we were like only but a few years ago. I can remember being brought up in a very poor area of Lancashire where the 'norm' was for a woman to be dominated by her husband in similar ways to the ones being made out to be a soley muslim issue.

Many of my friends mothers lived in violent and abusive relationships where their husbands expected their food to be ready when they came home or she, or the children, would get severe beatings from their drunken partners.

Being violent and abusive is not a muslim speciality it happens in all faiths and religions. It is only in the last twenty years or so that British women have decided not to put up with it and stay in abusive relationships. Previously women would have been ostracised within their own families and communities and there was no support networks to help them as you see today.

Islam holds women in great esteem and respects them as individuals. In fact this freedom for women extends much further back than the rights and freedoms women in the west enjoy today. There are cultural differences between nations but that is also true of our western nations. Women are allowed to have their own property and earnings of which they are free to do with as they please. When she marries, a muslim woman receives a marriage gift from her husband which again is hers to use as she sees fit. Married women keep their own names and identities and the marriage process allows for any mutally agreed conditions either party wish to have.

In Islam it is not acceptable for forced marriages. Families are able to 'suggest' suitable husbands but any woman has the right to say no and her decision should be accepted. I am aware that this is not always the case but finding exceptions does not make the religion of Islam a bad thing anymore than having Mormons and others do the same in America makes Cristianity a bad thing either.

Satsumo- the only intergrating should be the foriegners under "PROPER MANAGED"immigration, with us, it doesnt matter about their beliefs they want to be accepted in England fine live as us,dont force your terrorist views an religous rants down my throat your be hung for treason,you want to practise your religion fine do it it in our churches an leave your culture an beliefs at home,

Does your view extend to other religions and beliefs too?. Do you think we have just one or two?. Did you study RE in school?. I can't believe you are so ill informed.

Islam is only one of many religions here in the UK. This country is better for having such a wide and diverse range of cultures and religions, it's what makes this country special in the world. We have more interfaith marriages in this country than any other in the world. We should be proud of that fact and try not to behave like the redneck racists we see in the American threads on immigration.

Being a muslim is not the same as being a terrorist just like being Irish didn't make you a terrorist either. Islam is a religion of peace, you should read up on it before making such tasteless remarks to someone. Your showing your ignorance.

beachbum - the wet liberals may like the idea of accepting all an sundry here,lots of us do not, it is a tragedy how this once great country has been so watered down an ruined by goody goody liberals imposeing there warped views on me,an filling this country with people who should not be entertained here.

we should have very very strict manged immgration, iam not oproud of this once great country being filled with asylum seekers,immigrants, an other scoungers co ming here because there papers printed here say how are streets are paved with gold, any illegeals should be sent straight home regardless whether they face the death penalty,that includes all the preachers of hate,

i will not accept being told to accept there customs an beliefs an other crap they wish to force on us, we are in england, labour have turned alot of people into people into so -called racists because of there wishy washy attitude to us the white english.an swamping england with foreigners,

i know alot of people on here go under the gise of wet liberals but where you have black you also have white.an stop accuseing people of being racists just because you cant brainwash others to have the same views as you. Jon Gaunt for Prime Minister!

Islam is only one of many religions here in the UK. This country is better for having such a wide and diverse range of cultures and religions, it's what makes this country special in the world. We have more interfaith marriages in this country than any other in the world. We should be proud of that fact and try not to behave like the redneck racists we see in the American threads on immigration.

Well, I think there are a few things that immigrants do that have an adverse effect on alot of things in this country. We have a large percentage of children living below the poverty line and the majority of those children are refugees or immigrants. Is it such that people are now not allowed to have preferences? I 'prefer' Christianity, which tends to condem the actions of some Muslims in a round about way.

Being a muslim is not the same as being a terrorist just like being Irish didn't make you a terrorist either. Islam is a religion of peace, you should read up on it before making such tasteless remarks to someone.

Tell that to the Jihad. Or not, they may well blow you up for doing so. I agree, there are many positives to the Muslim religion but as posters have said on here before, it is not about religion but culture. Two very different things. I think you will find that arranged marriages and domestic violence are very common amongst Muslim communities. If women are so revered and are given so much freedom, why does my mother in law wear a headscarf constantly? Because she is oppressed by a male dominated society that tells her she must do so.

Jihad means struggle. There are many forms of stuggle which Musims undertake. It is a religious obligation to them. The fact that most people only see muslims or Jihdists in a bad light is because that is how they are being made out to be in the media.

From what I can understand about the headscarfs and burkas and such, the females do it by choice as a means of showing respect for themselves and their husbands.

Many of the cultures from which our immigrants come from are repressive by todays standards but would have been perfectly acceptable behaviour here in the UK only a short time ago.

Young muslims today have been brought up to expect certain freedoms and in secular countries like Turkey as well as in other 'westernised' places like much of Iran and formerly Iraq, the women do not suffer repression or violence any more than women here do.

With developing nations we should look to educate and inform people rather than trying to condem them for their beliefs which have been held for centuries. It takes time and education but when given the opportunity muslim countries and nations do start to enjoy and expect the same freedoms and rights we do.

msg 7 he was a northener dose that meen only northeners beat there women any way as to muslims only dateing or marring in to ther own race i was wonce told why muslim men go out of there race by a muslim and its sick he was told by a muslim clerick at a young age that a good muslim man would find any way possible to stop the infedel thay are his words and that by getting white women to ether marry or have the babies of muslim men was in the eyes of alha the sam as fighting with a wepon and would be treated as a great victory in the long run

Whoever that muslim cleric is hes obviously off their head. My parents would rather all their kids married muslim asians. My brothers have done this but us gals have our own ideas. Its crazy to think that you should go out there and get married to non muslims just so that you convert them. If someone converted to be with me i would rather it was because they wanted to not because they wanted to impress me. It is difficult to convert to another religion when you are use to living your life a different way. I know many "infidels" who have married asian men and have converted. All of them are happy, none of them have divorced so far. As a lot of the people on this forum have said there are good and bad in everything. If anyone wants to convert to islam they must do it of their own free will and anyone who goes against that is not doing it for islam but for their own selfish reasons.

Nugget please accept that the people in afghanistan do not behave like proper muslims. They are under the control of the taliban who are not really looking at the interests of the people. They really cannot be seen as an example of a good muslim nation. I am a woman and im treated the same within my faith. If you know me at all you would know i would not stand being a second class citizen. I would expect to be on the same level as a man. the only examples of muslims in the media are the ignorant ones. If you truely got to know a normal one you would see the difference.

Surreygal, no.You know better than me that women are at all effect second class citizen in all muslim countries. There are only degrees of mistreat between Afghani bleak and Turkish colors. From the women in Tehran that still defy the Ayatollah, to the honour-killed in Jordan to the analphetism ridden majority of Arab women, they will all tell you that they are very, very far from beng "free" in any conceivable way.

Yes, it's getting better...now that's a fact too...it will get much better and evenctually it will be just as good...but... for now and another 2/3 generations freedom is still another thing.

turkish women arnt stood over by the taliban so why are thay treated as second class by there men all a burkha sorry if spelt wrong is rob a person of there individuality if thay carnt be seen thay carnt be heard sorry if i sound ignorant just my opinion

i dallied with the idea of dating a muslim many years ago but the fact that her family were strict and i thought i was taking advantage a little due to age difference i bottled it.The truth is that it wouldnt have worked for long.And being the coward i can be i judged the risk one not worth taking.It would have been a cloak and dagger affair (poor pun)At my age the chances are that a muslim i would date would be more likely to be past first marriage age and her family issues may not be such a hinderance.why rule it out?

Nugget i know you are just airing your thoughts and thats what the forums about. Im not so ignorant that i would think you are disrespecting me. You always speak sense but im going to have to disagree with you sorry. A woman CHOOSES to wear a burhka in islam so that she is not used as a sex object but respected for who she is. An individual with a right to voice her opinion. I dont wear the burhka but i know women that do. None of them have been forced to wear it just their choice.

Mr Diabolik i agree that women in turkey are treated rough i have seen first hand. They are usually made to stay at home while their men work in restaurants. Most of the waiters are sleeping with tourists and i found this sick. I think you are mixing up tyrants that take over a country pretending to follow the rules in islam. Like i said there are a lot of people who pretend to know islam inside out and try to use it as a weapon to beat people over the head with. Im a muslim woman. Im free. I dont let anyone try and control.

i had a 13 year relationship with a muslim man, he was kind and never lifted his hand to me, i have two children to him, the only problem i had really was his family members who were older than him, they tell them what to do and they listen its respect he would walk away if we were falling out. i left him and married an british man i had to flee to a homless unit because of his temper and now im single again so my story is the opposite thanks.